Fairy Tale

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Seth Numrich, Stephen King

Length: 24 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

Winner of the 2023 Audie Award for Best Male Narrator

A #1 New York Times Bestseller and New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice!

Legendary storyteller Stephen King goes into the deepest well of his imagination in this spellbinding novel about a seventeen-year-old boy who inherits the keys to a parallel world where good and evil are at war, and the stakes could not be higher—for that world or ours.

Charlie Reade looks like a regular high school kid, great at baseball and football, a decent student. But he carries a heavy load. His mom was killed in a horrific accident when he was seven, and grief drove his dad to drink. Charlie learned how to take care of himself—and his dad. When Charlie is seventeen, he meets a dog named Radar and her aging master, Howard Bowditch, a recluse in a big house at the top of a big hill, with a locked shed in the backyard. Sometimes strange sounds emerge from it.

Charlie starts doing jobs for Mr. Bowditch and loses his heart to Radar. Then, when Bowditch dies, he leaves Charlie a cassette tape telling a story no one would believe. What Bowditch knows, and has kept secret all his long life, is that inside the shed is a portal to another world.

Magnificent, terrifying, and “spellbinding…packed with glorious flights of imagination and characteristic tenderness about childhood, Fairy Tale is vintage King at his finest” (Esquire).

“Good, evil, a kingdom to save, monsters to slay—these are the stuff that page-turners are made from.” —Laura Miller, Slate

©2022 Stephen King. All rights reserved. (P)2022 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved. ©2015 YP / RECORD TWO.RIEN QU’UNE FOIS by Keen’V / Zonee.L / Matthieu Evain / Fabrice Vanvert,

Stephen King the master

A few hours in and cannot stop listening! This story already has my full attention. I'm loving the main character.

Fairy Tale Is a Must Read, and a definite keeper, to be read again and again!

Fairy tale captured my imagination from the moment the first chapter began, and wouldn’t let go of it until the final words of the tale were spoken. I’d recommend Fairy Tale for anyone who enjoyed not only King’s own dark tower cycle, but for lovers of fantasy fiction of all kinds. It’s a book you won’t be able to put down until you’ve read it in its entirety, whether you parcel it out chapter by chapter or read it in a single sitting. A definite keeper and an even more definite reread!

Seriously too short

I can't see there being a sequel to this book, although it is possible, but i really hope there will be...it is, in true King fashion, almost 25 hours long and felt like it flew by...there are many reviewing saying it was boring in parts (either first half or second half or whatever), but it flowed perfectly...wasn't rushed, didn't lag...give me more!

I found the good reviews here to be on target.

I haven't read a Stephen King book in a good while but I like him and I like his stories. He did a great job with this one. I think it's among his better works.

My listening tends to happen while I'm bike commuting, and when I'm doing projects. Perhaps you can relate to the unfortunate times when you're listening to a book - and then you're not - you tune it out. it happens. That didn't occur with this book.

The narration was outstanding and there are characters in the story that are extremely tough to translate into the spoken word. Seth Numrich is a total pro and I really admire how he tackled this daunting task - particularly a character who tends to speak rather clamorously. Other narrators could've interpreted this character differently, perhaps resulting in negative reviews. His approach made this character endearing and fun to listen to, so kudos to him.

I want to express my appreciation to Stephen King for a lifetime of scaring the hell out of billions of people from multiple generations and for standing up for what is right as a prominent person, so woven indelibly into our cultural fabric.

Great story, phenomenal narrator!!

This book kept me gripped from beginning to end. Certainly Stephen King is a great author, but the narrator really brought this book to life. I really hope to hear more from him! Highly recommend this audio book!

Just what a novel should be

I don’t love all of Stephen King’s works, but this is a good one. The backstory building to the second act kept my interest and the payoff was good. I loved the narrator and will look for more books that he reads.

Amazing story!

I loved the depth of the characters! I loved the storyline and the voices the narrator delivered. I laughed and was scared and even teared up at times. Such a great told story!

Perfection

I never wanted this Fairy Tale to end... Kings best work in my opinion. Not his traditional horror, if you're expecting terror, don't. But if you want a story you can't break away from, characters that are so vivid it's like they're standing in front of you, and a narrator that brings another world to life, this one's for you!! Amazing 👏

Good Performance and Story. King is still a sex pervert

I haven’t read any Stephen King in a long time because everything he writes seems to be written in the same colors and themes. Like a dog, he keeps going back to the same fire hydrant to pee on. Which has been hugely successful for him, so don’t mind me.

But this book is different! Yeah, it borrows a lot from myths, legends and folktales, but it was surprisingly good! But maybe it’s a little predictable for that reason. Still had me hooked!

OUTSTANDING!!!!

Absolutely captivating from start to finish! Out of the literal hundreds of books I've read, this one tops the charts. Fantastic story, stellar narration. I loved every bit!